Bed attachment



April 13, 1937.

H. L. KE LLY ET AL BED ATTACHMENT Filed June 28, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet l Inventor;

April 13, 1937.

H. L. KELLY ET AL {BED ATTACHMENT Filed June 28, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 V Inventors 1551/6222; LEW/225072,

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Patented Apr. 13, 1937 UNETED STATES BED ATTACHMENT Hercules L. Kelly and Irwin H. Wilson, Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii Application June 28', 1935, Serial No. 28,928

4 Claims.

This invention relates to a novel accessory or appliance which may be broadly referred to as an attachment for abed, the same being primarily designed for use in sick rooms and hospitals, and for beds in general; and particularly adapted to function as a combination reading light and call-button holder.

We have discovered the need for the provision of a simple and economical attachment of the aforementioned type which may serve as an expedient and practicable means to provide the occupant of a sick bed with readily available conveniences not ordinarily furnished in present day hospitals, homes, clubs or hotels in a manner to permit said conveniences to be forever at hand for ready usage. Ordinarily, a call-button is of course provided for each bed and this usually consists of a convenient hand grip on an electric wire with a suitable button. It is the custom to place the call-button under the pillow, on a night table or to hang it in some supposedly convenient position for the patient. What we have in mind, however, is to provide an attachment which functions in such manner to always keep the call button within convenient reach and to have it located at a definite and well established point so that it is always easily accessible.

With the foregoing factors in mind, and desirous of providing a structure which is aptly fitted to fulfill the requirements of our well-directed endeavors, we have reduced to practice and perfected what we believe to be an ingenious combination structure which serves not only as a holder for the current conductor wiring on the call-button, but at the same time serves as a suitable and feasible support for an electric bulb susceptible of being conveniently swung over the bed or in such position as is most practicable for the patient, thus providing a unique two-in-one appliance for the user.

Briefly, we accomplish what we desire through the instrumentality of a clamp which is attachable to the bedstead, a holder tube adjustably connected to a coupling, and a coupling which is adjustably connected to said attaching bracket, the tube being so made as to not only accommodate the electric bulb but to also removably accommodate the supporting or hang wire for the call-button.

The invention is characterized by features more explicit than those just enumerated and these will be made readily apparent from the succeeding explanatory description and the concluding definitions in the form of claims.

In the accompanying drawings wherein like numerals are employed to designate like structural parts throughout the views:

Figure 1 is an elevational view of the complete double acting attachment showing the preferred embodiment of the invention.

Figure 2 is a top plan view thereof. Figure 3 is an end View on a slightly enlarged scale looking at Figure 1 in a direction from left to right with certain of the details removed for clearness of illustration.

Figure 4 is a detail longitudinal sectional view through the right hand end portion of the structure, the section being taken somewhat on the plane of the line 4--4 of Figure 1.

Figure 5 is a section at right angles on the line 55 of Figure 4. V

Figure 6 is a section of the attaching clamp. Referring now to the drawings by distinguishing reference numerals we call attention first to the attaching clamp I, this being constructed for attachment to a portion of the bed as indicated at 8. This is a simple U-shaped clamp having a felt protector lining 9 and provided with a set screw in having a clamping element II to bear against the bed post as shown more satisfactorily in Figure 6. On the crown portion of the clamp is a stud l2 terminating in a ball joint connector element I3 which serves to accommodate the jointing or coupling unit M. This unit W is made up of a pair of different sections, each of which includes a portion [5 to partially embrace the ball joint or head I3 and a portion l6 fashioned as a grip to accommodate the adjacent end portion of the bodily adjustable pipe or tube l1.

to any suitable portion of the bed so as to pro-;

mote convenience and efiiciency of use. This tube l l as shown in Figure 2 is provided with a longi-' tudinal slot H) which extends from end to end and this arrangement serves to accommodate a pair of electric wires 20, one of which serves .to supply current to the call-button holder, and the other to the electric bulb. The call-button is denoted by the numeral 2l and the bulb is indicated at 22. Ordinarily the call button is attached to a suitable wrapped wire as shown and all that is necessary is to drop the wire into the slot l9 so that it will be seated in the tube or arm I1. One end portion may hang down to render the button accessible. The button is denoted by the numeral 23 and is provided on the customary hand grip or knob 24. The numeral 25 designates a tell-tale or signal light which lights when the button is pressed to show whether the signalling circuit is in order. We might also call attention at this time to the laterally directed keeper slot or notch 26 which is formed at the right hand end of the pipe or tube so as to allow the free end portion of the call-button wire to hang down in a flexible easily operable position. This notch 26 is nothing more than an aperture to expose the wire to promote convenience of assembling and operation as is obvious.

We call attention now to the numeral 21 in Figure 4 which designates a special fixture which constitutes the mounting for the electric bulb 22. This comprises a head 28 in the nature of a disk which is screw threaded to accommodate a retaining ring 29 which holds the flanged attaching socket 30 removably in place. Extending centrally from the disk-like head is a sleeve 3| which functions as a socket and fits telescopically over the adjacent notched end portion of the tube. The numeral 32 designates a divider which serves as a stop element to abut one end of the tube, this being formed with apertures 33 as shown in Figure 5 to permit the wires (not shown) to pass therethrough to supply current to the bulb. This partition also carries an L-shaped finger 34 which is in efiect a locking element or latch and in practice the finger is inserted through the adjacent end portion of the slot [9 and is then given a half turn so as to feed the laterally directed end portion into the keeper notch 26. This serves to detachably couple the fitting 21 on the arm or tube l1 and provides a convenient mounting or holder for the electric bulb. In practice, the bulb may be provided with a shade or shield (not shown) so that it may be conveniently utilized as a reading light. We might also say that this L-shaped locking finger 34 has an additional function in aiding in keeping the hanger wire of the call button in place. In other words it prevents the wire from jumping out or being pulled out easily such as might happen under certain unexpected conditions.

Our principal aim, as is obvious, is to provide any sort of clamp provided with appropriate adapter means which is more or less universally adjustable to accommodate the bodily adjustable tube IT. This tube is in effect a holder for the conductor wire of the call-button and also serves as a support for the fixture 27 which accommodates the bulb 22. The wires for either the bulb or the call-button are easily insertable through the slot I9 and easily removable whereby to promote expeditious assembly and efiicient operation.

The principal novelty, it is believed, resides in the provision of the open-ended slotted tube having the keeper notch at one end to accommodate the conductors for the bulb and button respectively, said tube being in effect a carrier arm, being adjustably connectible with the bedstead to promote convenient adaptation and being especially useful in accommodating the bulb mounting and its detachable connecting means.

It is thought that persons skilled in the art to which the invention relates will be able to obtain a clear understanding of the invention after considering the description in connection with the drawings. Therefore, a more lengthy description is regarded as unnecessary.

Minor changes in shape, size and rearrangement of details coming within the field of invention claimed may be resorted to in actual practice, if desired.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is:

1. In a bed attachment of the class described, a supporting arm, an attaching bracket for said arm adapted to be secured to a bed post, a sleeve fitted on said arm and provided with a bulb attaching socket, said arm being tubular and formed with a cable insertion and accommodation slot and a keeper notch for an end portion said cable, said notch being joined to said slot and said sleeve being provided with a retaining finger having a laterally directed keeper terminal removably located in said keeper notch to-hold the sleeve in place.

2. A bed attachment of the class described comprising a longitudinally elongated slotted tube having a conductor wire accommodation notch at one end of the tube in communication with the slot, manually regulated means for adjustably connecting said tube to the bed, a callbutton appliance comprising a current conductor wire fitted into said tube by way of the slot in the tube, the free end portion of the wire passing out from said tube through said notch to permit it to hang down in a conveniently accessible position with relation to said tube, said callbutton appliance including the customary handgrip and press-button switch embodied in the hand-grip.

3. In a structural assemblage of the class described, a longitudinally slotted elongated tube provided adjacent one end with a cable accommodation and keeper notch, a flexible current conductor cable arranged removably in said tube and insertable and removable through said slot and having one end portion extending through and beyond said keeper notch, an electric wire equipped reading light mounting including a sleeve fitting removably over the notched end of said tube, said sleeve being formed with a hooked retaining finger turnable from the slot into said keeper notch to facilitate maintaining the mounting in place on the tube and to simultaneously function as an aid to holding the cable in' the notch.

4. In a bed attachment of the class described, a horizontally disposed longitudinally elongated reach arm, said arm being in the form of an open-ended tube having a longitudinal slot extending from end to end and provided adjacent one end with a notch registering with said slot, means for detachably and adjustably connecting one end of the arm to an existing portion of a conventional bed to allow the arm to be swung to an out-of-theway position when not in use, or swung over the bed when in use, a closure for one end of the arm embodying a sleeve fitting over said one end, said sleeve including a retaining element projecting into the tube and turnable from the slot into the notch to maintain the sleeve removably in place.

HERCULES L. KELLY. IRWIN H. WILSON. 

